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Vollt 141
Vollt 141, originally vault 141, was an underground shelter built in Kentucky to test how languages change over time. The project was a joint partnership between the Vault Tec Corporation and Promethian Coal, who provided the test subjects and location. The residents stayed underground for an extended period of time, developing an irrational fear of the surface. Experiment Parameters Residents were chosen from among the employees of Promethian Coal by the company's CEO. Many at Vault-Tec objected to the use of the coal miners, believing their distinct county accent and low level of education would hamper the experiment, but the executives and project managers ignored their complaints, as Promethian had supplied vast funds to the project. The location was chosen in a open pit coal mine, and a long tunnel was dug into the side of the pit to prevent any surface dwellers from stumbling upon the Vault. Isolation was vital to the experiment. The experiment was a study in linguistics designed to observe the changes in language in an isolated community. The scientists were kept in a separate Vault, much like Vault 81. They installed a series of acoustic devices in the vault, allowing them to listen to and record all conversation. To speed up the change, correcting anyone's grammar, spelling, or pronunciation was disallowed and punishable by exile. The teaching of language in schools was forbidden. Written works could not be shared with a younger generation, unless done so under the command or authorization of the Overseer or Linguistics Team. Results and Social Order The CEO of Promethian Coal, ￼ Gregory Boyce, added himself to the resident list. He also arranged for much of the mine's equipment to be stored in the Vault. Using hired hitmen, threats, and bribes, he took over the Security Department and Linguistics Team. Boyce ruled the vault as a totalitarian dictator, using strict control over language and conversation to silence all critics. Any praise of the surface was punished by death. All words to express different distributions of power or economic systems were banned (examples: revolution, democracy, socialism, market, totalitarian, libertarian). All education was forbidden for the residents, but the scientists, guards, and himself still had access for their children. A caste system was implemented, and within 3 generations Boyce and god were synonymous. Language did change significantly, as knowledge of proper English withered away, but the experiment had been abandoned long ago. The acoustic devices were now just spying tools. Volltian, the lower-class diallect, became so distinct that the workers could no longer understand English, which became the language of the Boycian class. In 2100, in a public ceremony designed to display his power, Boyce tore down a wall in the Vault Storeroom and mining began anew. Over the next 2 centuries, the vault expanded deeper and deeper into the tunnels. Iron was discovered, leading the the creation of a steel foundry in the Vault. The residents stumbled upon the surface several times, and a few managed to escape, but most ran back in terror and had their superiors seal the tunnel. By 2300, the vault had a population measuring in the tens of thousands. Vollt 141 was a large subterranean industrial powerhouse, but the vast majority of the population lived in poverty and ignorance, most were near starvation. The hydroponics workers, miners, and smelters had only limited contact with each other, and no knowledge of the outside world. The Hellmen, as the explorers were called, formed a middle class. They faced the harsh dangers of the Appalachian mountains, and toiled in above ground construction projects, but had far more rights than the workers, even having access to limited education. They Boycians (owners of the mines, factories, and other facilities) had unimaginable power. Each one lived in wealth and luxury. They had a full education, access to above ground resorts, and household goods beyond the wildest dreams of the miners, sometimes including their own robotic or human slaves. The Boycian Assembly, consisting of all Boycians, makes laws for the vault and regulates language use. The Security Forces, a separate caste, is in charge of enforcing the Assembly's will. The highest ranking officers are granted their own seat in the Assembly. Vollt 111 operates under an oligarcic market economy, with the main currency unit being a Boycan, worth one ounce of iron. Workers are always under the strict control of their boss, and can't leave jobs without permission. For the average worker, rent and food takes up all their income. Notes The idea of Vollt 141 came from a horribly misspelled post on the Fallout Wiki, popularized by CayDtrey5 EzzA The idea for its social system is loosely based on George Orwell's book 1984. Category:America Category:Vaults